New Orleans Lady
by TRAE SKITTY
Summary: Tommy and Merton start off their first year at college and meet a cute new friend that stirs things up between them.
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

[Being a werewolf and a college student is rough. There never seems to be enough time to finish all of your assignments. Most college students don't do so well because they blow off classes to sleep late or go to parties. I'm not saying that I'm a better student than them because I skip classes too, but I think my reasons are a little bit more important.]

"Merton, hurry throw me a stake," Tommy yelled as he fought with a vampire.

"I'm coming!" Merton said as he stumbled around trying to find a stake.

"Come on, man! I got a History exam tomorrow!" He complained as Merton threw the stake to him and he quickly killed the vampire.

"I told you to study the other day and you wouldn't listen to me!" Merton said, making Tommy growl.

"I couldn't study! America's Best Dance Crew was on! It's not my fault. Blame Randy Jackson," Tommy said.

_______________

Tommy walked with Merton to their History class, expecting the worst. As the professor called people to come get their test papers, Tommy crossed his fingers, hoping for a miracle.

"Mr. Dawkins," the professor called out.

Tommy took his test and slowly unfolded it to reveal a 'D'. "Sweet!" Tommy whispered and high-fived Merton walking back to his desk.

"I'm guessing you did well?" Merton asked.

"I didn't fail! History is my worst subject so, that's pretty good."

"I thought every subject was your worst subject."

Tommy gave him a quick glare. "Sorry, I couldn't resist. Why don't we go do something tonight? It's Friday night and we deserve a break from fighting evil."

"_We_ deserve a break? Merton, you stand behind the nearest tree and mock monsters which only makes my job harder."

"Hey, don't forget I provide the emotional support! That's very crucial in any type of team work."

"Alright, what do you want to do anyway?" Tommy asked giving up.

"We should head down to The Jungle!" Merton suggested, getting excited.

"Merton, I'm tired. I really don't feel like standing around all night to watch a bunch of metal heads scream at me."

"But I really want to go!" Merton said, pouting.

"Fine, I'll go."

_______________

[The Jungle was a cool place to hang out. It was kinda like The Factory, but more like a music venue for the local college kids. I had no problems going to shows but, the metal shows sometimes scared me.]

When they got there, the first band was setting up their equipment. They stood in the back away from the crowd to avoid most pits and hardcore dancers. Merton read a flyer for the show that was posted on the wall next to him, "Kill the Non-Believers, Slaughter the Weak, Thursday's Massacre, and Murder in the Shadows - tonight's line up sounds a little violent!"

The first band started to play. It was your typical modern metal band. Every song was full of open notes and generic breakdowns. Tommy stood there with his arms folded, not making any kind of attempt to have fun. He spent most of the show pushing away the hardcore dancers and pulling Merton out from the bottom of the mosh pit.

"Whew! That was brutal! Slaughter the Weak really knows how to put on a show! Very old school," Merton said.

"You spent the entire time at the bottom of a mosh pit. How could that be any fun?"

"Look I'm a rebel, Tommy. I'm a real hardcore goth. It doesn't matter if you get cuts and bruises during a show. You have to live the music and that band, my friend, was very hardcore. Are you saying that you didn't enjoy that display of absolute metal?"

"Pretty much."

Merton made a disbelieving face and turned his back to Tommy.

"Merton, you got a pretty bad cut on the back of your arm. You might wanna put some ice on that," Tommy suggested.

"I'm sure it's not that bad," Merton said as he twisted his arm to see what it looked like, "What are you doing standing there! Quick! Get me some ice! You want me to bleed to death?!"

Tommy laughed as he grabbed Merton by his shirt and dragged him upstairs. Merton held ice on his arm, standing in the midst of all the bands' merch tables. As Merton whined about how much his arm hurt, Tommy looked around at all the 'metal memorabilia'. Kids were flocking to the tables, giving all the money they had to purchase any shirt, jacket, or sticker that had the band's name printed on it. Something caught his eye at the last merch table on the other side of the room. Standing in front of the table was a beautiful girl buying a band shirt. She was tall and slender with long golden blonde hair that flowed down her back. She stood out amongst all the other girls there.

"Merton, turn around and check out that girl at the table in the back," Tommy said, feeling the need to share something this beautiful.

"Yowza! That is one of the most beautiful creatures I have ever seen! I'm surprised you took notice of that fine display of metal," Merton said, not able to take his eyes off of the girl.

"Fine display of what? What did you call her?"

"Tommy, that girl, that vision, right there is not your average girl. Take note of the long golden mane with black streaks, the tight ripped jeans, the illegible band name stretched across her shirt. That is not your cute little cheerleader girl. She's a metal head," Merton explained.

"Alright, and your point is?"

"You can't like a girl like that. She's not your type"

"Who says?"

"Well, uh, it just wouldn't make sense. I mean, you're a jock, she's a metal head. It would make more sense for her to go with a handsome young man that shares the same musical tastes as she does. You know, someone kinda like me," Merton said, trying to keep this girl off limits to Tommy.

"Merton, that doesn't mean anything. Besides we don't even know this girl," Tommy said and turned to look for the girl, but she was gone.

They heard the last band start to play and walked downstairs to go watch them. They stood closer to the front when they saw that the girl that they had seen upstairs was in the front row. She went absolutely wild while the music played. Tommy and Merton were both mesmerized by the way she danced to the music. As Tommy watched the band, he actually caught himself enjoying the music. His thoughts drifted from the girl and he took notice of the guys in the band. They were full of tattoos, piercings, gauged ears and he couldn't help but wonder if these were the kind of guys that this girl liked. He hoped not.

"Hey, Merton, I'm gonna run upstairs and grab a drink. I'll be back," Tommy said. Merton just nodded, whether it was to acknowledge the fact that he was listening to Tommy or it was in approval of the band that was playing, Tommy didn't care.

As Tommy walked upstairs, the fear took over him once again. No matter what he did, the thought always haunted his mind. He never really took many things that Merton said seriously, but he kept thinking about what he said about the girl. _You can't like a girl like that._ What kind of girl would like a werewolf anyway?

Tommy hung his head, watching the ground as he walked to the counter where they sold the drinks. He picked up his head up and saw that the girl that he saw earlier was standing at the drink counter. He handed the guy behind the counter a dollar and the guy handed him a soda. Tommy opened his drink and took a long sip.

"Great show, huh?"

Tommy lowered the soda can and removed the drink from his lips to realize that the girl was talking to him. "Yeah, it's an awesome show, even though I usually don't like this kind of stuff."

"So, if this isn't your usual scene, what brings you here?" She asked looking up into his eyes. Her big almond shaped eyes were a bright green color.

"My friend really likes this stuff and he dragged me along. I like metal but not here. I like to listen to it when I work out and stuff."

"I get it, you're one of those undercover metal fans," she said and smiled, "You have really pretty eyes."

"Thank you. My name is Tommy by the way, Tommy Dawkins."

"I'm Roxie Harrison. Dawkins? Are you related to the mayor, Bob Dawkins? I just met him today."

"Yeah, that's my Dad. Where did you meet him at?" Tommy asked, intrigued.

"My family just moved down here, down the street from your house actually. Your Dad just came over and welcomed us and did the whole neighbor thing."

"Where did you move from?"

Roxie got quiet and an empty look swept over her face. "New Orleans."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Tommy said, not knowing what to say. New Orleans had just been hit by a hurricane and most of the area had been destroyed.

"It's okay. Nothing anyone can do about it so, whatever," she said really fast trying to steer away from the subject.

"Tommy! Where have you been? You missed it! There was this huge mosh pit and this guy went flying into the wall…" Merton ran off into one of his stories, walking towards Tommy and then realizing that the girl was talking to him.

"My lady," Merton said at the sight of the girl up close.

"Roxie, this is my friend, Merton."

"Merton J. Dingle," He said taking a slight bow.

Roxie giggled at him. "So you're the friend that dragged him along?"

"Yeah, can you believe this guy? Not liking these bands tonight!?"

"For the record, I like the one that's playing right now," Tommy corrected him.

"Oh, you mean the one that you're not watching at all?" Roxie joked with him, punching him in the shoulder. "I'm kidding. I totally get it. Some people just don't like the live metal atmosphere. It's understandable. Wow, its getting late already. I guess I should head home," she said checking her cell phone.

"I could drive you home. Should I mention I drive a hearse?" Merton said with a cheesy smile.

"I'm a big girl, I can walk home by myself, but thanks for the offer."

"You know, you really shouldn't walk by yourself, it's not safe," Tommy said, hoping she'd change her mind.

"Incase you don't remember, I'm from New Orleans. I can handle myself."

The guys looked at each other in amusement. "Well, if you need anything don't be afraid to ask," Tommy said.

"Thanks, guys," she said, winked and walked away.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Tommy woke up on Saturday morning and rolled out of bed. He grabbed some clothes and dragged himself to the bathroom and changed out of his pajamas. He walked towards the door and put on his letterman jacket. He turned to look at Merton, who was asleep, sucking his thumb.

It was a beautiful fall day. Tommy walked to the woods and when he got to the outer edge, he began to run. As he ran and felt the cool breeze hit his face, he wolfed-out. He tried to let all the worries and problems go, and free himself of all the burdens of being a nineteen year old werewolf. Then he heard something. He slowed down and came to a stop. It sounded like music. Something about it made him feel at peace. He walked around the woods, trying to find the source of the music. As he got to the edge of the woods near the State U dorm rooms, he saw a girl playing a guitar. She strummed on a black acoustic guitar. The notes started out soft, but slowly built up into a musical explosion. Then after the breakdown, it slowed down again and the song ended. He woke up out of a mesmerizing trance when it ended. He looked up and realized the girl sitting in the gazebo was none other than Roxie Harrison. Tommy de-wolfed and walked towards the beautiful girl.

As she was packing her guitar in its case, Tommy grabbed her shoulder. She turned around shocked to see him.

"Tommy," she said as a big smile spread across her face, "You scared me!"

"Hey, Roxie! I had no idea you played guitar, you sounded awesome!"

"Yeah, I've been playing since I was a kid and I just found this spot which is kinda cool to just chill and write music. So what are you up to today?"

"Uh, nothing really. Just woke up early for a morning jog."

"Wow, sounds like an exciting day in Pleasantville. This town is gonna take some getting used to. I complained that there was nothing to do in New Orleans, but this town is lame."

"It can be fun sometimes."

"How?"

Tommy stopped himself, remembering that fighting evil monsters and being a werewolf isn't exactly the fun that everybody has in Pleasantville. "Ok, it is lame."

"Oh, I almost forgot! Maybe today won't be so lame after all! Your Dad invited my family over for dinner tonight."

"I love how they tell me about these things," he said being sarcastic, "I guess I should go help my mom out and stuff. I'll see you tonight."

"Six o'clock," Roxie said with a big smile, showing her perfect teeth.

_______________

Tommy walked back up to his dorm, where he found Merton sitting around playing video games. "Guess who I just saw?"

"Elvis, he's alive?!"

"No, I just saw Roxie Harrison and she's coming over to my house tonight to have dinner." As Tommy stood in front of the bathroom mirror and fixed his hair, Merton paused his video game and sat in silence, wishing it was him going to see the lovely Roxie.

"Jealous?" Tommy asked, with a smirk on his face.

"I'd be lying if I said no," he said looking disappointed.

"Don't be sad little buddy. I'll bring you back some leftovers," Tommy said and headed out the door.

"He always gets the girls. Those leftovers better be something good or else I would be mad about this," Merton whined and continued to play his video game.

_______________

Tommy walked into his house and the delicious smell of grilled chicken overwhelmed his senses. He knocked on the kitchen wall and his mom turned around, excited to see him. "Tommy, honey! How has my baby been?" She hugged him like she hadn't seen him in years.

"I've been good. So, mom - I love how you forgot to invite me to the dinner with the Harrison's tonight."

"What are you talking about? I didn't forget my baby," Sally said pinching Tommy's cheek, "Wait a second – Dean! Did you call Tommy yesterday like I asked you to?"

"Mom! I can't sit here phone calls for you all day. Someone has important things to do around here. Some of us have to deal with their family. Do you know how hard it is to raise three kids? Not too mention I have to deal with Barbara Jean all day long!"

"Dean, stop watching Reba marathons," Sally screamed, even though her TV obsessed son wasn't listening anymore. She focused her attention back to Tommy, "He told me he had called you and you said you were coming. I'm sorry, honey, next time, I'll call you."

"The only reason I came today is because I met Roxie the other night and she told me about it."

"Tommy!" Mayor Dawkins walked into the kitchen and slapped his son on the back. "You are gonna love this dinner tonight! Not only do we have good food but, the Harrison's have a beautiful daughter."

"I was just talking to mom about her. She's such a cool girl and she is gorgeous!"

"That's my boy."

"Tommy quit talking about girls with your father and help me set the table," Mrs. Dawkins said.

Tommy helped his mom set up and then ran upstairs to his old room to make sure he was looking good.

[When I first found out about this dinner, I was pretty excited because all I could think about is spending time with Roxie. I never even thought about the fact that I would be meeting her family. Now I'm freaking out! I barely know this girl and now I have to try to charm her and her parents at the same time – and not wolf-out.]

The door bell rang and Tommy ran downstairs. When he got to the front door, his dad was already getting ready to answer the door and his mom was still rushing to get things ready. Tommy took a deep breath and collected himself – trying to keep his outer appearance looking good and the wolf inside locked away. Mayor Dawkins opened the door and greeted the Harrison's.

"Good to see you, Bruce, come in!" Mr. Dawkins shook hands with Bruce Harrison and then he stepped into the house. He was a very tall man. Even though his slender but well built appearance, he had a slight gut that pulled on his black collared shirt. Tommy could see Roxie when he looked at Mr. Harrison. They both had huge green eyes that caught your attention immediately. They also had the same heart warming smile.

Mrs. Dawkins ran to the door with oven mittens on in time to greet Mrs. Harrison. "Sally! Whatever is cooking smells absolutely delicious!" Jamie Harrison said excitedly as she hugged Mrs. Dawkins. She had medium length blonde hair and dark brown eyes that seemed like they were in pain despite her happy entrance.

"How's it going, mayor!" A very tall and muscular young man high-fived Mr. Dawkins. His muscular arms were decorated with tattoos. He had short spiky brown hair and you could feel his big ego enter the house. "Hey bruh, I'm Chad," He said and high-fived Tommy. He moved out of the doorway and then Tommy saw what he had been waiting for.

Roxie slowly walked into the house and winked at Tommy. She looked amazing in a plain black dress that came to her knees. He could feel a little growl escape from his throat and he coughed to cover it up.

"Welcome to our house!" Mayor Dawkins said, "You met everybody but, I don't believe you met my youngest son, Tommy."

Mr. Harrison shook Tommy's hand. He had a grip that could snap your hand in half. Even though Tommy had a couple inches in height on him, as he looked down at him, he couldn't help but feel intimidated.

"Is everyone ready to eat?" Mrs. Dawkins asked and walked over to table.

Everyone did the same and took a seat. Tommy made sure that he had a chair across the table from Roxie. Mrs. Dawkins began to pass around plates that were full of grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and pasta. The food must have been really good because at first, it was very quiet.

"So, Bruce, you owned a studio back at home? What exactly did you do?" Mr. Dawkins said, trying to start a conversation.

"I owned a studio called NOLA Noise in downtown New Orleans. I recorded a lot of artists in the area. Mostly a lot of metal underground bands but, we recorded all types, rock, hip hop, country," he said, then taking a break to take a spoonful of mashed potatoes, "We also rented practice space for a lot of the bands that didn't have any place of their own to practice. The whole family worked there as well."

"That sounds wonderful. So, do all of you play music?" Mrs. Dawkins asked, getting in on the conversation.

"Yes, that's why we had such a big trailer to unload. We have a lot of musical equipment. We saved most of it. I think we lost a drum set, a couple guitars, and most of our recording equipment."

"That's pretty cool that all of you can play, I don't think anyone in our family has any musical talent whatsoever." Mrs. Dawkins said.

"Well, music has always been a passion of mine and thankfully it also passed on to my kids. Roxie is the real musician in the family though," he said as everyone looked at Roxie just as she was taking a mouthful of chicken. "She loves to write and play, but she is also very big into the industry and business sides of music as well."

"Is that what you're studying at State U?" Mr. Dawkins asked.

"Yeah, I was so excited when I found out they offered music industry studies because that's what I had been studying back home."

"Excellent! I'm excited to have some serious musicians in Pleasantville!" Mr. Dawkins exclaimed.

"So what are you studying at State U, Tommy?" Mr. Harrison asked.

"I'm actually going for football. I'm just taking general studies right now."

"Always a good choice. Tell me when you have a game, I'd love to see you play. I used to play football for my high school. I was planning on going to LSU to play but, then I started getting into music and dropped out of college to go on tour with my band."

"You were in a band?" Tommy asked surprised.

"Yeah, me and my buddies from High School started a garage band because we wanted to be just like Black Sabbath. I thought we were going to make it big so we went on a tour in small cities all around the south. Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I had played football instead of music, but my life ended up wonderful and it's not over yet. So I don't regret any of the decisions I've ever made.

The Dawkins and the Harrisons continued their conversation through dessert. Tommy and Roxie had stepped outside so they could talk amongst themselves. Roxie shivered as she stepped outside. "I'm still not used to this weather. Back home it would still be ridiculously hot," she said and Tommy put his arm around her shoulder.

"Wow, look at the moon," she said looking up to the sky, "The full moon is so beautiful."

"Well actually the full moon isn't until tomorrow night," Tommy said. He remembered seeing that on his calendar this morning. [If only she thought that the creatures that came out for a full moon were beautiful too.]

"Close enough." She took a deep breath and stared out into the street as a car passed by. It seemed as if she was in a completely different world.

"You okay?" He asked, looking at the way the moonlight danced on her face.

"Yeah. I'm just really confused," she took a long pause between her thoughts, "I've always believed that everything happens for a reason, but now I'm finding that hard to believe. I mean, what kind of reason is behind destroying everything I've ever known?" As Roxie looked up at Tommy, to see if he held some answer to the question she has been asking herself over and over again, she could tell that he had no idea what to tell her. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. It's okay. I understand that you've been through a lot. You're in a completely new place and you don't have anything to relate to anymore. I kind of know how that feels. You can talk to me about it. I don't mind. I mean, you need a friend, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so. It's just that I just met you and I'm already dumping all my problems on you," Roxie looked up at him realizing by the look on his face that he truly didn't care.

"Anything you need to talk about, anything at all, I'm here for you."

"Thanks, Tommy."


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

Merton sat in the lounge, scribbling ideas for the Gothic Fantasy Guild fundraiser in a notebook. The nice thing about college is that, clubs like the Guild could thrive despite the occasional ridicule. There were actually a lot of active members. Someone came and sat down on the other side of the couch that Merton was sitting on. He took his eyes from his notes and looked up to see Roxie.

"Merton J. Dingle," Roxie said in a slightly seductive voice, "What are you up to?"

"Nothing really, just trying to come up with some ideas for a fundraiser for the Gothic Fantasy Guild meeting today."

"What is this, Gothic Fantasy Guild that you speak of?"

"The Guild, is a club that celebrates everything goth – clothes, movies, underground music, and the supernatural. I was president of the Guild in High School and the founder of it at State U. We have a meeting in a couple minutes, why don't you come check it out?" Merton suggested, desperately trying to get some time in with Roxie.

"Sure, sounds cool," Roxie said as she picked up her purse and threw it over her shoulder as she got up to follow Merton to the meeting. They went to a room upstairs that was seldom used for class. There were already a few people sitting in desks, waiting for the meeting to start.

Merton shook hands with the teacher who was there to moderate the meetings. It was usually just any teacher who was free at the time. "So you came up with any ideas for a fundraiser?"

Merton looked frantic for an answer to his question. "Well, I have a few ideas, but I'd like to see what everyone else came up with."

"You got nothing, huh?"

"Well I was going to say we could have a carwash, but I don't really think I want to see any of these people in bikinis. The pale and slightly overweight were not made for these types of activites."

"Good point," The teacher said and took his seat at his desk as more people filled the room. Roxie took a seat as Merton stood behind the podium ready to start.

They discussed renaissance festivals, the latest vampire comic book, and the show at the Jungle on Friday. "Alright people, any ideas for a fundraiser?" Merton asked desperately. Everyone just stared at Merton in silence. Merton started to get nervous. "Come on, people! The only thing I could come up with is a carwash!"

Everyone cringed at the thought of a carwash and began to whisper ideas to the person next to them. Then it came to Roxie. She raised her hand and smiled at Merton.

"I have an idea," Merton's eyes light up when she said that and he motioned for her to continue, "Halloween is in two weeks, right? What do people love to do on Halloween?"

"Uhh, go trick-or-treating?" Some guy in the back of the room said.

"Well, when you were a kid and your mom thought it was funny to dress you up like a pumpkin, yes, but at our age most people like get together with friends and watch horror movies. So, why don't we host a costume party and show old school horror movies in the lounge?"

"That's an excellent idea!" Merton said enthusiastically. Everyone immediately started brainstorming about the horror movie party. They split up into groups that were in charge of different things. Once the meeting was over, Roxie walked over to Merton to help him carry all of his props.

"Roxie, that was a great idea! I can't believe I didn't think of it first! I'm so excited about this!" Merton said.

________________

Roxie followed Merton to his dorm, picking up all the things that he dropped as he rambled about the Halloween party. Merton knocked on the door and looked for his key in his pocket. "Tommy! It's Merton, can you open the door!" Just as Merton found his key and was about to put it in the lock, Tommy swung the door open. He noticed Roxie and a big goofy smile spread across his face.

"Can you move out the way?" Merton asked Tommy, as he tried to juggle all the props in his hands.

"Oh, yeah, buddy." Tommy pulled the door open wide so Merton could walk in and Roxie could follow him inside still picking up the things he was leaving behind. They dropped all of it on the floor in the living room. Roxie dusted her hands off and looked at Tommy, who was standing there wearing nothing but some pajama pants. Merton saw that she was staring at him uncontrollably.

"Geez, Tommy, could you put some clothes on! We have a guest!" Merton yelled. Tommy walked into his bedroom, and Roxie leaned over and peeked into the room to watch him slip a shirt over his rock hard abs.

"Sorry, I just woke up, dude. I didn't realize we were having anyone over." Tommy said as he joined them again, fully clothed.

"Well, maybe you should stop sleeping naked!"

"I wasn't naked! I was wearing pajama pants."

Roxie cleared her throat, which made the guys realize that she was still there. "Okay, I'm thinking we screen movies on a big screen while the parties going on," Roxie said, brainstorming, as she paced back and forth in front of the couch that Merton and Tommy were sitting on.

"What are we talking about?" Tommy asked.

"_We_ would be talking about the Halloween party that the Gothic Fantasy Guild is hosting. It was Roxie's idea." Merton said, smiling at her.

"You like all that gothic stuff?" Tommy asked, getting jealous.

"Kind of. I like all the supernatural stuff they talk about, it's interesting. All the supernatural stuff kind of reminds me of home."

"Well, in that case you'll feel right at home here in Pleasantville," Tommy said.

"Pleasantville? Why?" Roxie asked.

"Um…Pleasantville is very spooky. A lot of weird things happen here," Tommy said trying to cover up his slip up.

"So, what movies should we show?" Merton said trying to save Tommy from making the situation worse.

"Well, I think it would be cool if we have a super old school movies. Those are my favorite to watch on Halloween. Something like The Curse of the Wolfman!"

Tommy choked on whatever he was drinking. "Why a werewolf movie?" Merton glared at Tommy, mad that he was trying to get in on this conversation that had nothing to do with him.

"Those are my favorite. There's just something about werewolves that are so much more interesting than vampires or zombies. They're not a 24/7 fright show. You can relate to them. They warm your heart by being real people, but then when the full moon appears they rip your throat out. It's a good story."

Tommy took a big gulp of his drink and looked at Merton in amusement. "Sounds good, I think I have the 70's version of the wolfman, I'll bring that one."

"Well, boys, I need to go work on an English paper. I'll see you guys later."

"Roxie! Um…you want to hang out at the Jungle tonight?"

Roxie wrote her number on a dry erase board that was hanging by their door. "Sure, just call me when you guys want to hang out. See you later boys," she said as she walked out the door.

Merton jumped up and danced on the couch. "What are you so excited about?" Tommy asked.

"I got a date with Roxie Harrison!" He said swinging his arms back and forth.

"No, you didn't. She said, call me when _you guys_ want to hang out."

"Well, it's not like you can hang out with her tonight anyway, wolfboy."

"What are you talking about – oh. Man, that's not even fair." Tommy said, disappointed because he forgot tonight was a full moon.

"It's perfectly fair. You got to hang out with her last night. Tonight is my turn."

"Last night wasn't a date, both of our families were there!"

"Look, don't be mad because she likes me more than you."

"Whatever, Merton." Tommy said and walked away. He didn't want to admit that he was jealous. He changed into some workout shorts and started to lift some weights. He was trying to get rid of his anger by lifting weights lately instead of his usual wolfy ways. Besides, coach had been recommending it anyway. After a 30 minute workout, Tommy took a break and grabbed an ice cold Gatorade from the fridge. He went to the bathroom to splash some water on his face. He wiped his face with a towel and looked in the mirror. He noticed that his muscles were starting to develop much faster than they used to, but he wasn't really complaining.

"Whoa!" Merton was startled by Tommy's buff appearance. "I guess all that working out lately is working."

"Merton, I think something weird has been going on with that. I've been gaining muscle like crazy lately and I've been feeling kind of strange."

"What do you mean by strange?"

"I don't know. I feel different. I feel a lot stronger."

"This all sounds really familiar," Merton said running over to his computer, "Professor Flugelhoff says that werewolves, just like human beings, go through a stage of intense development."

"Flugelhoff! The dude tried to kill me!"

"I know, Tommy, but the dude still knows werewolves." Tommy rolled his eyes and Merton continued to read, "This intense development is very similar to what human beings go through during puberty. After about a year, the werewolf's body will fill out and his strength will increase rapidly."

"So, I'm going through werewolf puberty? Is my howl gonna get deeper too?" Tommy said mocking the idea.

_______________

A couple hours later, Merton dialed the number that was on the dry erase board. As the phone rang, he tapped his fingers on the edge of the couch. "Hello," he heard a familiar voice answer the phone.

"Roxie? It's Merton. So are you still up for the Jungle tonight?"

"Definitely. I'll be back at the dorm in a few," she said and hung up the phone.

Merton excitedly hung up the phone and went to the bathroom to adjust his spikes for the last time. He peeked in at Tommy, who was lying on his bed with his hands behind his head staring at the ceiling. "See you later, Tommy," Merton said as he heard a knock on the door, "Try not to find any evil monsters tonight because I'll be busy."

Merton greeted Roxie, stepped into the hallway, and slammed the door behind him. Tommy sat up in his bed and stared at the door where Merton had just been standing. He stood up and put on a jacket and walked out the door.

_______________

Merton and Roxie sat at a table sipping on soda drinks while talking. They sat in the upstairs part of the The Jungle that was also used as a lounge sometimes. Heavy Metal played on the speakers just loud enough to hear but not ruin conversation. Roxie and Merton talked about music, movies, books, and all kinds of other things. They had a lot in common. Black Tide began to play on the speakers and Roxie started to dance in her chair.

"You like Black Tide?" Merton asked.

"I love these guys! They have that 80s Metallica feel, but hey are way different than any other band out there right now. They are probably one of the youngest metal bands out there today and they totally shred!"

"Yeah," Merton just smiled and looked at her. He was totally amazed that something so beautiful could know so much about music. There was no way Tommy could be with a girl like this. He could never appreciate the things she was interested in. What could he talk to her about, football? She probably couldn't care less about sports.

"So why didn't Tommy come out with us tonight?"

"Tommy? He had to do football stuff. He's been training a lot," Merton said, hoping that the Tommy conversation would end here. He didn't feel like coming up with any detailed lies to hide his friend's secret. Not to mention him and Tommy were competing for this girl.

"So how did two completely different guys like you and Tommy become friends?"

"Went to school together, had lockers next to each other, the usual."

"It's just kind of strange because you two are complete opposites, but it's kind of cool because y'all both like things that I enjoy. I can hang out with you and talk about music all day long and I can watch football games with Tommy."

"You like football?" Merton got a little jealous when Roxie said that she had things in common with Tommy. Merton wanted this girl to like him, but then he remembered that Tommy was a slave to the moon tonight and felt better.

"Duh! Who dat say they gone beat dem saints!" Roxie shouted and Merton just stared at her like she was a three-headed goat. Roxie cleared her throat, "What I meant to say is, yes, I like football."

Merton didn't understand. Girls like this usually hated football and anything to do with sports. He shook it off and remembered that no one is perfect and it was only a flaw. "You just don't look like the kind of girl that likes football."

"Merton, Merton, Merton," Roxie said as she shook her head, "I may look like a girl that you can pin for a metal chick who loves a good cheerleader bashing but, I'm not. When I was in high school, I was the co-captain of the dance team and on the weekends, I was the lead guitar player for a metal band. I don't like to be predictable. I like to surprise people. Life is more fun that way."

_______________

It was 12:30 P.M. and The Jungle was starting to close up for the night so Merton and Roxie decided to head back home. Merton held the door to the dormitory building open for Roxie to walk in first. "Actually Merton, I think I'm gonna sit out here and chill," She walked over to him and hugged him, "I had fun tonight. It's nice to have friends to hang out with, it helps me get my mind off of everything."

"Goodnight, Roxie," Merton smiled at her and walked inside.

_______________

Tommy patrolled the woods like he did every other full moon. Only this time he couldn't focus his attention on anything else besides Roxie. He didn't even know this girl but, she enchanted him. He couldn't believe Merton got to go on a date with her tonight. At the thought of Roxie laughing at his jokes and holding his hand, he picked up speed.

_______________

Roxie walked over to the gazebo and sat down. She pulled her phone out and stared at it, wishing a friend from home would call her. However, it was unlikely. She shook the thought out of her head and began to let her mind wander elsewhere, when she a noise in the silences of the night that startled her. When she turned around to see what it was, she was frozen in place at the sight of a werewolf standing near the edge of the trees staring right back at her. She couldn't believe her eyes. She thought creatures like this weren't real. She stood up very slowly, never taking her hazel green eyes off the werewolf. She started to back up, moving towards the door. The werewolf walked towards her as she moved away.

"Sit! Stay!" She yelled at him nervously, hoping he would go away, "Play dead!"

"I'm not a dog," Tommy corrected her in an annoyed voice and growled.

She started to walk backwards a little faster at the sound of his voice. She was about halfway to the door when she tripped and fell on her back. Tommy ran to her and held out his hand. Roxie started to push away on the ground but, Tommy only followed her with his arm reached out to help her up. She stared at his hand, more confused than terrified.

"It's okay. I'm not here to hurt you," he said in a low raspy voice.

Roxie put her hand in the werewolf's hand and he pulled her up to her feet. They stood inches apart staring at each other. Roxie's eyes were wide and full of shock. Tommy's eyes were sincere and calm in their wolf-like state. Roxie wanted to run to the door but, her feet wouldn't let her budge. Tommy could see the fear in her eyes and decided maybe he should talk to her.

"Did you hurt yourself?" He asked, waiting for an answer. She said nothing. He put his hand around her back, and she flinched as if it hurt.

"What do you want?" Roxie asked not understanding what was going on. Most werewolves were evil, demented creatures that ripped apart any living creature that they came in contact with to pieces, but that was in movies. This was real life.

"I'm not what you should be afraid of in this town," Tommy whispered in her ear.

"So what should I be afraid of?" Roxie asked, becoming more confused.

"The things that I protect you from."

Tommy shifted his eyes away from Roxie's face as he scanned the area. He heard footsteps nearby and took off towards the woods. Before he ran into the dark, he gave Roxie one last glance. Roxie felt like she was glued to the cement where she stood. Even though she knew what had just happened was real, she still wasn't sure if she believed it or not. She walked inside and upstairs to her dorm. Her roommate was fast asleep. She changed out of her clothes into some pajamas and lied down in her bed. She closed her eyes to try to fall asleep, but thoughts of the werewolf kept her awake.


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

As soon as her first class was over Monday morning, Roxie walked to the computer lab. She saw Merton in the lab and quickly sat next to him. He was busy building a website for the Gothic Fantasy Guild.

"Hey, Merton," she said, flashing a quick smile, then focused her full attention on the computer screen. Merton never even noticed her sit down but, when he did finally notice, Roxie had articles and stories pulled up on her computer about the Pleasantville Werewolf. Code Red.

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing," she said not really paying any attention to him and concentrating on what she was reading off of the internet. "How come y'all didn't tell me that this town was so cool?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, apparently, a werewolf walks among us in Pleasantville."

"A werewolf? There is no such thing."

"I thought you believed in this stuff, Merton."

"It's interesting to read about but, I don't take it seriously," Merton looked at Roxie's curious expression. "Why, do you think the werewolf is real?"

"I'm not sure. A couple of months ago I probably would have said no but, with everything that's happened to me lately, I've learned to believe that anything is possible."

"Hurricanes are natural disasters – natural! We're talking about urban legends, supernatural beings that we make movies about to entertain our simple human minds," Merton said trying to change Roxie's mind.

"I know it sounds childish to believe in things like that but, something made me change my mind," Roxie said looking away. Merton knew what that look meant. She had seen something last night that changed her mind when she stayed in the gazebo. All Merton could think about is the speech he was going to give to Tommy as soon as he saw him. "Well, I'll see you later, I have to go meet up with Tommy," Roxie said as she gathered her books and walked out of the room.

________________

Merton immediately met up with Tommy in the lounge.

"Merton, I really don't think we have to worry about her," Tommy said.

"She could be up to something! Don't you care about keeping this a secret?"

"Lori snooped around too but, she wasn't trying to expose me."

"We're not talking about Lori. Lori was an exception, not everybody is going to react the same way, Tommy."

"I can handle myself, Merton."

Merton was getting aggravated with Tommy not understanding the problem with the situation, "Tommy, you can't trust a girl just because she's got a pretty face!"

A big grin spread across Tommy's face at the thought of her. He was totally captivated by her.

"Tell me you didn't."

"What are you talking about?" Tommy said, trying to play it off.

"She saw you last night, didn't she?"

"No," Tommy said, obviously lying.

"Tommy, we've talked about this so many times!" Merton said, furious.

"It's no big deal, Merton. She saw me, she fell, I helped her up to make sure she was okay, and that was it."

"If that was it, then why is she researching and asking about the werewolf, huh?"

"She'll forget about it, all I have to do is lay low for a while."

"Tommy, the only reason I treat you like a child about this situation is because you obviously can't handle it on your own! You do whatever you want and you never think about the repercussions!" Merton yelled and took a big sigh. "Tommy, I just don't want to see anything happen to you."

"Sorry, Mom," Tommy joked as Roxie walked up to them. Merton walked away swinging his hands in the air as he yelled to no one in particular.

"Hey, Tommy," Roxie said with the cutest smile Tommy had ever seen.

"Hey what's going on, girl?"

"Oh, nothing much, same old stuff, trying to survive as the new girl."

"Well, I'd say you're doing a pretty good job."

The two of them stood near the pool table where Tommy had been playing a game before Merton had given him the "don't tell the pretty girl your secret" speech. Roxie picked up a pool stick and began to line it up to take a shot..

"I have a question for you, Tommy," she said in a concentrated voice right before she hit a combination shot and made a ball into the corner pocket.

"I might have an answer for you," Tommy said as he leaned over the table to take a shot.

"Do you believe in werewolves?"

Tommy nearly fell on top of the table when he heard her question. He stood up and examined Roxie. All he could think about was what Merton had just told him. Even though Roxie looked like she could kick his ass, Tommy saw a sweet nature under her tough girl appearance.

"Werewolves?"

"Yeah, you know, half-man, half-wolf, fangs and claws?"

"Right, right. Uh…I don't know, I've never really thought about it."

"Oh come on, with all the sightings in this town, you've had to hear about him or possibly even see him. Have you?"

"No, I've never seen it, because it doesn't exist. Why the sudden interest? You didn't see the werewolf did you?" Tommy walked over to the side of the pool table where Roxie was. He looked down into her curious hazel eyes.

"No, I was just researching stuff about Pleasantville and stumbled upon the articles and now it has me curious. That's all."

Tommy knew Roxie couldn't possibly be after him, but he was definitely going to keep on eye on her and try to lay low. "So how was your date with Merton?" Tommy asked as he set his pool stick down on the table and sat in a lounge chair.

"That wasn't a date," Roxie said as she sat in the chair across from him.

"Well, that's what I assumed it was," Tommy said trying to dig out some information and get away from the werewolf topic.

"It's not like I don't like Merton, but I'm not really looking for a boyfriend right now," she sighed and continued, "It's just with everything that's going on in my life right now, I don't think I could handle a relationship."

Tommy nodded. He could understand that but, he wasn't going to give up on this girl that easy. "Well what if the relationship could help you with all the things you're dealing with."

"Well if I can find someone that could do that, it would be a different story. All I'm saying is that I'm not looking for love. I'm just looking for happiness and I really don't know what that is for me anymore," Roxie stood up and began to walk away. Before she could walk out of the lounge, she turned around to look at Tommy. It felt like there was something keeping them together but, Roxie finally broke the stare and left the room.

Tommy sat alone in the lounge trying to figure out what it was about her that made him feel this way. He barely knew this girl but, he felt like he had known her all his life. Even though he had only met her a couple of days ago, he knew that she was here for a reason.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 1

It was two days before the Halloween party that the Gothic Fantasy Guild was hosting. It was all anyone could talk about. It was going to be the most successful thing the Guild had ever done. Merton was in the lounge directing the cleanup of the lounge for the party. Tommy had been recruited to do all the hard work that the weak and pale members of the Guild couldn't do. Tommy walked over to Merton, while wiping his forehead with a bandana from his pocket.

"There's not much more we can do today. I want people to walk in and be surprised! We'll have to finish the rest Saturday before the party," Merton said looking around the room.

"Have you seen Roxie lately?" Tommy asked.

"No I haven't seen her in a while, she's been real busy. It's been hard to work around here without her enthusiasm and shining smile but, I understand how much work there is in moving to a new place."

"Or maybe you just understand the fact that she's gorgeous so you let her slide by," Tommy said.

"Maybe," Merton said with a chuckle.

"Well, buddy, I think I'm gonna head out. I'll see you later," Tommy said and ran off in a hurry before Merton could question him. Tommy wanted to know what was up with Roxie. He hadn't seen her around school like usual. He knew she was probably busy with moving in still but, he worried about her. He knew that she was holding a lot of her emotions in because it seemed that every time he saw her they were trying to pour out.

_______________

Tommy knocked on the door to Roxie's dorm room.

"Who is it?" Roxie's familiar voice yelled out.

"It's Tommy!"

Tommy heard shuffling coming from the other side of the door. It sounded like a wrecking ball was being thrown around in there. When the door opened, he saw a smiling Roxie, with distress in her eyes.

"Tommy," Roxie said, looking distracted, "what a surprise."

"I just wanted to stop by and make sure you were okay. Me and Merton were decorating for the Halloween party and…" Tommy stopped mid-sentence as he looked around her dorm. Not only did it sound like a wrecking ball was being thrown around, but it looked that way too. Clothes, pictures, books, and all kinds of things were spread out all over the dorm room.

"And?" Roxie asked, trying to get Tommy to finish his sentence. "Distracted by my mess?" Roxie said walking back inside her dorm. Tommy closed the door and followed her inside. Roxie threw herself down on the couch and fiddled around with the mess around her.

"I'm sorry I bailed on helping out but, I've been feeling overwhelmed with the mess I have here."

"Could I help?"

"Thanks, but you don't have to do that, Tommy. You have better things to do than sit around and be my maid."

"Roxie, needing help doesn't make you weak," Tommy said, sitting next to her on the couch.

Roxie sighed and knew he was right. She always had a problem with people trying to help her all the time. She felt as if it made her weak and incapable. She always wanted to appear strong and independent. "Well, I guess if you don't have anything to do and you're really bored…"

"What's first?" Tommy asked with a smile.

_______________

After several hours of cleaning, Roxie and Tommy were sitting on the floor of her dorm room looking at old pictures and listening to music. As Tommy looked at all of Roxie's pictures, he was amazed at all the things she had done. Even though he was a teenage werewolf and has fought almost every mythical creature in the book, he felt like he had accomplished nothing compared to her. Every one of her pictures seemed to have some sort of extravagant story.

"This is from my senior year," Roxie said smiling as she looked at the picture Tommy held in his hand, "I was captain of the dance team that year. We were marching in a parade on Mardi Gras day and Gene Simmons was riding on the float behind us. He was joking around with us while we waited for the parade to start rolling. He was so funny."

"I can't believe you met Gene Simmons!" Tommy said and did an impression of Gene and his famous tongue.

Roxie laughed, "He was doing that all day!"

Most of the other pictures were all of Roxie and her friends playing shows. The pictures started to become repetitive when they were all of Roxie with the same boy in different places. He had had big gauges in his ears that stuck out from his long dark brown hair. Tommy started to feel out of place with this girl. Although they had sat around laughing and telling stories for hours, he knew that these were the kind of guys she liked. He could never be that guy. He was just an average everyday jock – who turned into a werewolf at night.

"Is this your boyfriend?" Tommy asked, hoping to hear it wasn't.

"Definitely not!" Roxie said laughing slightly. "That's my best friend, Mike. I could never date him, he's like my brother."

Tommy was relieved to hear that. Roxie stared at the picture for a long time and let out a small giggle. She found a picture frame near her and she slipped the picture of her and her friend in it and placed it on her night stand. Tommy picked up the last of the pictures and handed them to Roxie as she tucked them inside a photo album that she would organize later. At the bottom of the box the pictures were in, he found a notebook with writing all over the front of it. He flipped the cover over and saw that the first page was covered in drawings of wolves and other things that weren't related. He flipped to the next page and it looked like the same thing.

"I guess you like drawing wolves?"

Roxie snatched the notebook from Tommy's hand like he was a little kid playing with a knife. "Those are personal drawings. I would appreciate if you wouldn't look through them." She got up from the floor and placed the notebook on top of her bed. She returned back to where Tommy was, while looking very embarrassed.

"Sorry," Tommy apologized, not knowing what he did wrong.

"No problem. Anyway, thanks Tommy. You were a big help."

"You're welcome. Anytime," Tommy said suddenly feeling awkward. "Guess I'll head out. Gotta get my costume together for Saturday."

"Yeah me too," Roxie said following Tommy back to the door.

"What are you going to be?" Tommy asked and stopped in the hallway infront of her door.

"You'll have to wait till Saturday to find out," Roxie said, and kissed him on the cheek. "See you then."

_______________

Tommy returned to his dorm room whistling, to find Merton sitting at his computer desk doing homework. Tommy grabbed a soda out of the fridge, popped it open, and sat on the couch.

"You went to talk to her," Merton said never taking his eyes off of his work. Tommy turned to face Merton, knowing he was mad.

"Talk to who?" Tommy asked, trying to play dumb.

"You know who I'm talking about."

"Yeah, I went to see Roxie. What's the big deal?"

"You know I like her."

"Merton, I like her too."

"You can't Tommy!" Merton said throwing his pen down.

"Why? Because you like her?" Tommy said starting to get fired up.

"Tommy, it's not as easy for me to get girls as it is for you," Merton said, looking at Tommy like a poor soul that never had a minute of happiness.

"Yes it is, Merton! You just have to do it and stop complaining about it so much," Tommy said, getting up from the couch. He was getting annoyed because Merton was resorting to his usual pity party.

"That's easy to say when you're Tommy Dawkins! I see the way girls look at you when we walk down the halls! The only girl that gives me that look is the creepy librarian with the snaggletooth!"

"You think I have it easy but, I don't. If people knew what I really was, they wouldn't want anything to do with me."

"People take one look at me and don't want anything to do with me."

Tommy let a low growl escape from his throat, "I'm done talking about this." He sat back down on the couch and took another sip of his soda as he stared at the blank television screen. Merton knew Tommy was aggravated with him so he let it go, even though he felt differently and wanted to fight about it until Tommy saw his side. They sat in silence for a couple minutes until Merton couldn't take it anymore.

"So did Roxie have anything to say for not helping us today?" Merton asked trying to break the silence that was driving him insane.

"She apologized for not being there. She just has a lot going on with moving and everything. She said she'd be there Saturday no matter what," Tommy blanked out for a second before he went on, "Not only is she a musician but she's also a pretty good artist. She had a notebook that was full of drawings of wolves. Although, she got pretty mad at me for looking at it."

That caught Merton's attention. His head snapped up and he looked at Tommy worriedly. "Wolf drawings?"

"Yeah every page was covered in wolves. It was all the same drawing done over and over again but, done slightly differently," Tommy said, not thinking anything of it.

"That doesn't strike you as weird, Tommy?" Merton asked and Tommy's face remained blank. "New girl moves into town, asks about the werewolf, has notebook full of wolves…"

"You're not trying to say she's some werewolf slayer or something trying to get to me, are you?"

"Well it all adds up doesn't it?"

Tommy thought about it for a while and he knew Merton could be right. Normally he would ignore Merton when he accused girls he liked of something like this. However, Roxie's reaction to him looking at the drawings made him see Merton's point. "I can't see Roxie being that way. She's the most genuine person I know but, you should have seen the way she acted when I saw the notebook. For once, you could be right."

"For once?"


	6. Chapter 6

NOTE: Sorry it's been a while, I've been busy with school. ANYWHO, there's not much going on in this chapter. It's just a transition between chapters, until the exciting stuff comes, which I promise will be in Chapter 7! Thanks for your patience. Hope you guys enjoy!

CHAPTER 6

Two figures ran through the woods near Pleasantville U on a cool Friday night. As they came close to the campus, they stopped near the edge of the trees and peered through. They waited for a long time until someone stepped out of the dormitory building, it was none other than Tommy Dawkins. They both seemed to get very excited and unusually quiet as they saw him.

"That's him!" One of them said in a whisper so low it was barely heard.

"He doesn't look that threatening," the other said in a tone not so quiet. Tommy looked over toward their direction. He quickly looked away and walked out of their sight. They stepped out of the woods and the moonlight showed their faces. One was a middle-aged female with short brown hair. The other was a jittery young man with a slight white boy fro.

The woman elbowed the boy in the ribs. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Did you forget that he's a werewolf? He can hear you, yah know!"

"Sorry," he said as he rubbed his ribs where she hit him.

"Alright, so now that we know where he is, our job will be much easier. Maybe we'll be the ones who finally stop Tommy Dawkins!"

"Don't get your hopes up," the boy said, before he got elbowed in the ribs again.

_______________

Merton woke up early Saturday morning, the excitement of the party not letting him sleep, and grabbed a bottle of yoohoo. As he sat on the couch sipping his yoohoo, the thought of Tommy going to see Roxie yesterday still bothered him. Merton knew that as long as he was in competition with Tommy over a girl, he would never win. However, tonight was Merton's night.

Merton heard Tommy rustling around in his bed. He knew he had to get down to the lounge and see how everything was going with preparations for the party. He threw something halfway decent on and spiked his hair a little. "Tommy, I'm going down to the lounge to get a head start on everything," he yelled out as he shut the door behind him. Tommy flailed his arm that was hanging over the bed as an acknowledgement, even though he knew Merton had left already.

As he entered the lounge, Merton looked around the room and thought about what still had to be done to be ready for the party. He raised one eyebrow slightly and took out his cell phone. He searched through his contact list until he found the name that seemed to be on everybody's lips – Roxie. He dialed and paced back and forth as the phone rang.

"Hello?" Roxie's energetic voice answered.

"Hey, Roxie, it's Merton. I'm in the lounge and I thought I'd call you to remind you about decorating for the party tonight." Merton heard a door open and turned to see none other than, Roxie walking into the lounge. She hung up her phone and smiled.

"What are you doing here so early?"

"I felt bad because I didn't help the other day so I decided to get here early and get some things done," she said and pointed across the room where she had hung up a huge bat over the punch table. As Merton looked around at the rest of the lounge, he noticed a few other little decorations she put up.

"Roxie, that looks amazing!"

"Nah, the decorations were already here, I just put them up."

"Well you did an awesome job!"

Roxie and Merton took all the decorations and laid them out on the table. They began to hang up smaller bats from the ceiling. "So, Roxie, what are you costuming as tonight?"

"Why is everyone so anxious to know? Life is more fun with surprises," she said without taking her concentration off of the decorations.

"I'm just excited about tonight," Merton asked.

"I know but, I like to unveil my costumes on Halloween. I like to make a big entrance."

"I can respect that although, I could never do it," Merton adjusted a small bat's wing and thought about how much he liked Roxie. He had just told Tommy that he needed to be careful with her, due to the events of yesterday. However, looking at her, he could understand how that could be difficult. "So, Roxie, what did you do back at home for fun?"

"The usual for a teenage girl, I guess. I went to the movies and spent all my money at the mall. I think my favorite thing to do was to go to local concerts. New Orleans may not have the biggest metal scene but, we definitely have the most interesting one. Talking walks on the levee on a cool Sunday morning before the Saints game is another thing I miss a lot."

"Have you seen any ghosts or other supernatural beings in New Orleans?" Merton asked.

"No, it's all just an act. There are ghost tours in the French Quarter and supposedly haunted hotels but, it's a tourist attraction. I've never seen anything. I don't even know if I believe in that stuff anyway."

"I thought you said you believed in the Pleasantville Werewolf."

Roxie finally took her eyes off of what she was doing and looked at Merton right in the eyes. "I'm Katrina crazy right now. If you gave me halfway convincing articles on the existence of the Easter bunny, I'd probably believe it." She broke her stare and laughed. "All of that stuff is fake, right? That's what everybody believes New Orleans is about. It's not. It's so much more than that."

"That's kind of weird," Merton replied, "This might sound like a stereotype but, I guess I always thought people in New Orleans went fishing in the bayou during the day and went ghost hunting at night."

Roxie laughed, "That's what everybody thinks but, New Orleans is just like any other town for the most part. The only difference is the feeling that you experience when you're there. It can't really be described. It's something that you have to experience for yourself."

"It sounds like it's a wonderful place."

"It was a wonderful place," Roxie said and started to tear up a little.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry, Roxie."

"I'm not crying," Roxie said and composed herself.

Merton felt bad for making her upset. He wanted to question her to see if he could dig out any information about her being a werewolf slayer or something to that nature. He realized that he had to take it from a different approach.

_______________

Tommy woke up and looked at the clock – 1:00 P.M. He laughed to himself because Merton always made fun of him for sleeping so late on the weekends. He always said that it was vampires that slept during the day, not werewolves. He got up, stretched, and scratched his chest. He walked over to the fridge and found nothing of interest for breakfast, until he saw some leftover chicken legs from the Hungry Bucket.

"Hey, Merton!" Tommy called out, with silence as the only response. Tommy got up and looked into Merton's room and saw no sign of him. Just before he was about to kick into panic mode, he remembered that Merton said he was going to decorate for the party early. He got dressed and walked out the door after he grabbed another chicken leg. Tommy walked into the lounge and found a lot of the kids that had helped the other day, running around putting their own little touches on decorations. He passed some of the kids from the tech department rigging up the screen for the movie. He caught sight of Roxie and his heart began to race.

"Hey, Roxie!"

Roxie turned around and smiled at Tommy showing off her perfect white teeth. "Hey, Tommy! Merton wasn't joking when he said you sleep all day!"

"You guys were talking about me?" Tommy asked.

"I was just asking Merton why you were missing out on all the fun around here but, don't worry I used to sleep late every chance I got. When the only gigs you can get are at bars and you stay out all night, you really have no choice but to sleep in all day. So what's your excuse?"

Roxie stared right into his eyes like she was searching for much more than the answer to her question. Tommy wasn't sure how to feel about Roxie wanting to know where he was. He liked Roxie a lot and felt that she asked because she liked him too. However, in the back of his head, he couldn't help but think of what had happened in her dorm room the other night. Tommy shook the thought out of his head. "I just like to sleep late."

Roxie's expression led him to think that she didn't believe him. "Anyway, everything is mostly finished around here so I think I'm going to head back up to my room and get ready for tonight."

Tommy looked around surprised to see everything actually finished and ready for the party. Roxie touched his shoulder, smiled, and left the room. The mystery that surrounded Roxie excited and worried him at the same time.

Merton walked over to Tommy with a shrunken head hanging over his shoulder. "Figure anything out?" Tommy asked.

"No, she wouldn't budge. I guess I'll just have to find out what her costume is tonight at the party," Merton answered with a disappointed expression.

Tommy hit Merton in the back of the head, making the shrunken head fall off of his shoulder. "What was that for?" Merton asked, picking up the Halloween decoration that had slipped off his shoulder.

"I was talking about Roxie and the wolf."

"Oh," Merton said, feeling stupid. "I started to ask her about her life back at home and she got upset so I steered away from the conversation."

"You ever wonder if we're just paranoid?"

"Tommy, when have my suspicions ever been wrong?" Merton asked.

"Well, there was the leprechaun lunch lady, the demon cashier at the mall-"

"Ok, I get the point," Merton interrupted him before he could continue, "but, remember you were the one who questioned her in the first place."

"I know. It freaked me out and the first thing I thought about was 'she's a slayer' but, I think we tend to overanalyze things."

"Sometimes we have to."

"Yeah, especially when new chicks come into town and you have the hots for them and tell them my secret," Tommy said sarcastically.

"That was completely different," Merton said, defending himself.

"Sure it was, buddy." Tommy put his arm around Merton and left the lounge as Merton continued explain why that wasn't his fault.


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

It was Saturday night, all Hallow's Eve, and State U's lounge was filled with students dressed as vampires, witches, and there was even a Hannah Montana zombie. Music bumped from the speakers as everyone danced. Merton was standing at the front door greeting people as they came in, costumed as the joker. He wore a long purple coat with a green vest and black pants. He face was painted and a green wig covered his head.

"Welcome to the party!" Merton greeted a couple dressed up as gangsters.

"Any sight of her yet?" Tommy walked up behind Merton and asked.

Merton turned around to see Tommy dressed in a red robe with black pants. He was chewing on a black smoking pipe. "What are you supposed to be?"

Tommy looked at him like he was insane. "Hugh Hefner!" He said and turned around showing off his costume.

"You look like a guy in a robe to me," Merton said.

"He is a guy in a robe – a rich guy that lives with playboy models that wears a robe," Tommy corrected him. Merton rolled his eyes and noticed some guy sleeping in the punch bowl.

"The party just started and there's already a guy swimming in the punch!" Merton stomped off towards the punch bowl to get a handle on the situation.

Tommy walked around the lounge, taking in his surroundings. As everyone danced in their costumes, carefree, the thought washed over him again. He could never be as carefree as the people around him. They had no idea that the monsters that they costumed as were real, well maybe except for the Hannah Montana zombie. They all had the normal responsibilities. They didn't have to worry about saving the world from the supernatural. They weren't werewolves. They were lucky.

As Tommy stood in the middle of the dance floor, thoughts flooding his mind, a new song began playing on the speakers. The song was 'Little Red Riding Hood' by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. "This song goes out to Little Red Riding Hood, lookin' good, girl," the DJ said and then gave his best wolf howl. Tommy looked up to see Roxie entering the room, dressed as none other than, Little Red Riding Hood. It wasn't the traditional costume, more like the modern, evil version. She wore a black corset that was laced up with red ribbon and a black raggedy skirt. Her tall black leather boots covered up her fishnet stockings. A long red hooded cape that was torn on the bottom completed the costume.

She noticed Tommy and smiled, a little more evil than usual. Whether she was just getting into her costume or it was a genuinely evil smile, he didn't care. Either way it took the depressing thoughts they were haunting him and replaced them with a completely different mindset.

"Mr. Hefner, why are you all alone?"

"Thank you! You get my costume!"

"Who wouldn't?" Roxie asked and immediately knew the answer. "Merton."

Tommy laughed and pointed towards the dance floor, "Want to dance?"

"Of course I do, Mr. Hefner."

"Please, just call me Hugh," Tommy said and started to dance.

Roxie smiled as Merton passed near them with another member of the guild, trying to carry the guy that fell asleep outside the building. "This is a pretty cool party. You know, excluding the guy that was in punch."

"I feel like I should be helping him with that," Tommy said.

"I think he's got it," Roxie said, looking up into Tommy's eyes. "Besides you have to stay here and protect me."

"Protect you from what?"

"The big bad wolf."

Tommy knew that comment should have worried him but, the way she looked in that costume with her pigtails distracted him. As they danced, an awkward boy bumped into Roxie. She turned around to see who it was. She gave him a glare that could have burned a hole through his skull. The boy who wore nothing but a Jason mask for a costume, pulled the mask down on his face to hide from her glare.

"Watch where you're going, buddy!" Tommy said. Roxie turned back to face Tommy, who was keeping his eyes on the boy who was now running out of the room.

"Tommy?"

Tommy focused his attention back to Roxie. "Is there a problem?" Roxie asked.

"No," Tommy said, just as Merton returned back to lounge. He stared at Tommy and Roxie like he couldn't bare the sight of them dancing together.

"Hey, Merton," Roxie said, "Nice costume!"

"Thank you, my dear." Merton said and bowed. Roxie laughed and Tommy felt a growl erupt from his chest. Merton looked at him, surprised.

"I'm sorry, was I interrupting something?" Merton asked, sarcastically.

"No," Roxie answered at the same time that Tommy said, "Yes." Roxie looked at Tommy, surprised at his answer. However, Tommy didn't notice because he was giving Merton a certain look of his own.

Roxie cleared her throat a couple times, which seemed to get neither of the boys' attention. "Alright, this is awkward. I'm going to head to the bathroom and um…well do what one does in the bathroom," she looked back and forth between the two boys realizing that her announcement was not getting anymore attention, "right." She walked away leaving Tommy and Merton alone in their awkward, quiet argument in the middle of the dance floor.

As the bathroom down swung shut behind her, Roxie could still hear the music playing, only muffled. She began to walk into the middle stall in the bathroom, when she heard a noise. She stopped where she was standing to listen, when she realized that the noise sounded like a person talking and that person was a boy.

"Come on already!"

Before Roxie could leave the bathroom, she heard a second voice but, this one was a woman's voice. "I have to wait until the right time. If I do it too early, he'll have time to stop it."

The voices were coming from the very last stall. Roxie walked towards the stalls as quietly as she could in her high heeled boots. "I can fight him," the boy said, confidently.

"Please, did you forget who he is?"

"Tommy Dawkins, big deal. What's so special about him?" The boy asked with a snort.

"Listen to me, you idiot! This is a big deal! We are going to be the ones who finally catch Tommy Dawkins and you will not ruin it for me! If you mess this up I will kill you in the slowest and most painful way that I can conjure up."

"Alright, alright! I won't do anything unless you tell me to."

"Good boy," the woman said with a wicked laugh, "Now remember if we have to kill him, leave it to me."

Roxie couldn't believe what she was hearing. She let out a small gasp. "What was that noise?" The woman in the stall asked. She threw the door open and revealed herself as the same woman that was in the woods before. Roxie made eye contact with the woman for a second and ran as fast as could out of the bathroom. The woman grabbed the curly haired boy by the collar of his shirt and dragged him behind her as she stormed out of the bathroom.

Roxie ran through the crowd frantically looking for Tommy and Merton. She found them right where she left them, as they still argued.

"Tommy, we've had this conversation time and time again," Merton fumed.

"That means you should know how it ends," Tommy said eyes glowing.

"Tommy!" Roxie yelled as loud as she could over the music.

Tommy and Merton looked at her, both smiled, and then looked back at each other to continue their ongoing argument. "Why don't we just settle this?" Merton asked, raising his eyebrows.

"And how exactly do you want to do that?"

"Guys!" Roxie screamed again.

"Like real men," Merton answered, putting his fists up.

Tommy laughed, "Yeah, right."

"Tommy! Merton!"

"What?" They both yelled back at her.

"I was just in the bathroom and I heard a man talking in one of the stalls-"

"They're letting us go in the women's bathroom now?" Merton interrupted.

"No! Like I was saying, I was in the bathroom and I heard this guy-"

"You went into the men's bathroom!" Merton said, putting his hand to his chest, shocked that Roxie would do something so scandalous.

"Merton, shut up!" Roxie said and slapped his arm. "Anyway, I heard a man talking in a stall with a woman. Before I had the time to get extremely creeped out, I heard your name, Tommy. They were talking about fighting you and maybe even killing you!"

Tommy's eyes got wide and he looked at Merton, frantic as to what to do.

"What did you do, Tommy?" Roxie asked.

"I didn't do anything," Tommy replied, realizing he needed to get out of this conversation and try to figure out what exactly was going on.

"Tommy, people are talking about killing you! You have to do something pretty serious to have people using your death as a backup plan!" Roxie screamed at him as he tried to walk away.

"It's probably just some people from the Southwestern football team. You know how college football can get," Tommy said, scanning the room for anyone that looked suspicious.

"Tommy, maybe you don't understand what I'm telling you. A girl was seriously talking about killing you!" Roxie screamed at him, frantic with worry and fear..

"It's probably a cheerleader that got a little wild and crazy because I kicked her boyfriend's butt at the game a couple weeks ago," Tommy said and grabbed Roxie by her shoulders, "It was probably Justin Landry and his stupid girlfriend. Don't worry. I'm just going to go talk to them." Tommy walked away with Merton following him, leaving Roxie standing alone, or as alone as one can be on a dance floor, with her hands on her hips.


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

[Just when I thought I could have a fun night out with Roxie, I find out there are people in the bathroom planning my death. As I thought about what might be lurking around State U, I wished it was something as simple as the excuse I told her. I had a bad feeling about this.]

Tommy pushed through the crowd looking around frantically, scanning each person he passed. He got to the entrance and looked out into the hallways – empty. He turned around to face Merton, "So?"

"So, what?" Merton asked.

"What's going on?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Because you're Merton and you just always know what's going on with this kind of stuff."

"Tommy, I don't specialize in translating conversations from bathroom stalls! Besides you made such a good cover up, I thought you had everything all figured out."

"I'm going to go check outside. You stay here and guard the door."

"Wait, what am I guarding against?"

"I don't know, anyone that looks suspicious."

"Tommy, it's Halloween! Everyone is in costume! How am I supposed to pick out suspicious looking people?"

"Just do it!" Tommy said and walked away.

_______________

Tommy exited the main hallway that connected to the lounge and stepped outside. There was no sound, no movement. As he scanned the area, he heard a click. He turned around and saw someone running in the halls in the opposite direction from him. He ran over to the doors and discovered that they were locked. He ran around the school only to find out that all doors leading to the lounge were locked. Tommy went into panic mode and realized that this could be about more than killing him. Everyone inside could be in danger.

_________________

Merton stood by the door, dancing as much as his pathetic rhythm would allow. The boy with the Jason mask entered the lounge and before Merton could greet him, the boy pushed him to the ground. He locked the door Merton was supposedly guarding as well. He ran through the crowd and met the woman near where the DJ was.

"It's all done, Morgan," he said, flinging the Jason mask to the ground, "We're ready."

"Excellent," she said and smiled in an evil manner.

"So does that mean you can finally give me Alpha powers?" The young boy asked, excitedly.

"We'll see," she said, answering him just to keep him quiet, never letting the evil smile leave her face.

"But, you said-"

"I said nothing, David. Now shut up! It's time." David folded his arms and pouted while Morgan began to unleash her evil plan. She lifted her hands as her eyes rolled into the back of her head and said, "On this night Hallows Eve we ask of thee, to turn these mortals into the creatures they pretend to be." Lightning struck the middle of the dance floor and a purple light illuminated the room and then quickly faded.

_______________

As Tommy ran around the perimeter of the building looking for a way in, he heard screams erupt from inside. He didn't want to damage the school but, as soon as he heard the screams, he knew he had no choice. He tightened his jaw and wolfed out. He backed up a couple of steps and ran into the door pushing it open with his supernatural strength. As soon as the lounge was in his sight, he knew something extremely bad was happening. Through the windows on the door, he could see everyone running mad. He grabbed the handle to open the door and pulled it towards him, ripping the door off its hinges.

He felt as if he had just stepped into a circus. He saw vampires, werewolves, ghosts, and other monsters that he wasn't familiar with. As Tommy looked around the room trying to take everything in that he was seeing, someone pushed him against the wall. A grandmother, with her hair in curlers and horribly messy lipstick, was pinned against him as a zombie closed in on her.

"Excuse me," Tommy said, trying to squeeze out from between the wall and grandma. "Miss, excuse me." She only screamed and squeezed him against the wall more, due to the zombie getting closer. Tommy put his hand on her shoulder. She looked down at her shoulder and noticed his hairy hand and fainted. He laid her down as gently as he could as the zombie, that was dressed like Hannah Montana, crept closer towards him. The zombie grabbed his head and pulled him towards her.

"Hannah, huge fan," Tommy said, struggling to break her grip on his skull. She only continued to attempt to bring his skull towards her dry, hungry lips. Something clicked and Tommy remembered that he had seen a girl in a Hannah zombie costume earlier. He knew that it was a possibility that there was some sort of spell that made everyone actually become their costume. This only made his job harder, realizing that if he hurt any of these monsters, he was actually hurting the people underneath the costume.

"Why are you so angry? I thought you had the best of both worlds! What went wrong?" Tommy asked as he struggled with the zombie. His instinct told him to rip her arm off but, he knew he couldn't do that. He finally broke her grip and ran off as she ran into the wall, not realizing that he had run off.

Tommy scanned the room for Merton. He only saw chaos and people running in every direction. He ran over to the DJ stand, to look for the microphone, which he spotted in a gorilla's hand that ran past him. He walked down from the platform that the DJ stand was set up on and looked at the crowd, having no idea what to do.

He heard a wicked laugh, turned to his left, and saw a woman in a long dress standing next to him. "What do you propose to do, Mr. Dawkins?"

"How do you know my name?"

"You would be surprised to know how much I know about you, Tommy," she said with another wicked laugh.

He stood in front of her and asked, "You did this?"

"Yes, and I will ask again, what do you propose to do about it?" She stared at him with vicious eyes, daring him to answer her.

"Change them back!"

"Or what?" She asked, devilishly. Tommy growled and he felt a hand on his arm. He turned around to see the boy with the Jason mask from earlier.

"You're in on this too?" Tommy asked.

"You bet," he answered and wolfed out.

Before Tommy could begin to fight, someone kicked him in the side. He was caught off guard and fell to the floor. He looked up to see Roxie standing above him holding an axe. He jumped up and asked her, "What's the matter with you?"

"I've got a score to settle with you, wolfy!" Roxie yelled, pointing the small but, sharp axe towards him.

"I did not see this coming! This is going to be great!" Morgan exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"What are you talking about? What did you put her up to?" Tommy asked as he avoided swings of the axe.

"I didn't put her up to anything. She's only under a spell that causes her to become her costume, which just so happens to be Little Red Riding Hood. As far as I remember, Little Red isn't too fond of the big bad wolf." Morgan smiled and watched as Tommy fought Roxie.

"Roxie, put the axe down!" Tommy screamed as Roxie held it over her shoulder.

"I don't know who Roxie is but, if this is another one of your tricks, I just want to let you know, I'm not falling for it!" Roxie swung the axe towards Tommy's neck. He knocked the axe out of her hand, grabbed her arms, and held them behind her back.

Morgan continued her evil laugh, enjoying every minute. "Turn her back, witch!" Tommy yelled as Roxie struggled.

"I'd love to, really I would. However, I have things to do. Have fun!" She waved her hand as she ran out into the chaotic crowd with David running behind her.

As Tommy watched Morgan, Roxie seized the moment and slipped one arm out from his grip and hit him hard in the ribs. Tommy buckled over for a second and let out a deep growl.

"Didn't like that did you, wolfy?"

"Roxie, please stop! I don't want to hurt you!" Roxie picked up her axe and walked slowly towards him. "Is that you, Grandma?" Tommy looked behind her, pretending to see Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother. Roxie turned around quickly and Tommy ran off to find Morgan and David.

________________

Tommy pushed through the crowd as fast as he could. He made it to the hallway, closed his eyes, and tried to track Morgan's scent. He opened his eyes to find Merton right in front of his face. Tommy jumped back and Merton laughed maniacally.

"Not you too!" Tommy thought he would be relieved to see Merton at a time like this, however, he realized he wasn't looking at Merton right now. He was looking at the Joker.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," he said licking his lips, which were covered in bright red lipstick, "I take that back. I see no gentlemen here, just a mangy little dog."

"What do you want from me?"

"What do I want from you? Why do people always assume that I want something from them?" Merton circled Tommy as he spoke to him. "Maybe I just want to help put a smile on that face," he said with a crazy laugh.

"I don't have the time for this," Tommy said and began to walk into the hallway. Merton put a hand on his chest to stop him.

"Maybe you didn't hear me correctly," he said, getting right in his face, "I want to put a smile on your face! Want to see a magic trick?"

Tommy tightened his fists, "I don't like magic tricks."

"That's the problem with little doggies like you. You don't train very well. However, if you're a good boy and do what you're told, I'll give you a treat!"

"I said I don't like magic tricks. I'm going to say this once and only once. Get out of my way," Tommy said and let out a growl.

"The big bad puppy wants me to get out of his way, does he? However, I never put a smile on that furry face!" Merton dug in his pocket to take out a pencil.

"What if I show you a magic trick instead?" Tommy said as the Joker watched him attentively.

"Watch my hand and I'll make stars appear," Tommy waved his hand in front of Merton's face until he balled it into a fist and punched him. Merton fell to the floor and Tommy propped him up against the wall. He patted his friend's head. "Sorry, little buddy."


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

Tommy walked through the hallways, taking in every scent. He could hear Morgan's wicked laugh somewhere near. He passed a classroom door and heard a noise that sounded like it came from the other side. He crept closer to it, peering into the window on the door. As he stared into an empty classroom, something hit him in the back of the head. He barely even flinched. He tightened his jaw and slowly turned around. He saw David in a pose that suggested that he was ready to fight. Tommy just laughed at him.

"Look kid, I just want to get everyone back to normal and go home, maybe eat some fried chicken," Tommy said with an aggravated tone.

"It's not about what you want. Tonight I'll get what I want," he said with a goofy smile that was meant to look much more intimidating.

"What do you want?" Tommy threw his hands in the air and then letting them fall back down at his side. He walked closer towards the awkward boy who slightly trembled.

"I want what you have."

"Aggravation and hunger?"

"No! I want your power, your strength."

"And exactly how are you planning to get that?"

"Considering my girlfriend's a witch, I'd say it's pretty easy."

"That's your girlfriend? I guess that makes sense. You're probably the only idiot that would date a woman with a laugh like that."

"Don't make fun of her!" David lunged at Tommy. Tommy kicked him in the ribs and knocked him to the ground. David struggled and growled as Tommy held him down by the throat.

"Let me go!"

"You really think your pleading is actually going to make me let you go?"

"It's always worth a shot, right?"

Tommy shrugged and picked the boy up. He kept a tight grip on the back of the boy's neck. "Show me where that girlfriend of yours is!"

"Never!" David whined in a pathetic voice. Tommy growled and shook the boy. "Alright, alright!" David began to walk towards the same classroom door that Tommy was looking in before. Tommy looked in and this time saw Morgan pacing back and forth. As Tommy was distracted watching Morgan, David broke his grip and began to run off. Tommy took a deep breath and ran after him, much faster. He picked him up and threw him over his shoulder. He kicked open the door to the classroom and slammed David on one of the desks.

"Found this in the hallway. Thought I would return it to you," Tommy said, dusting his hands off. "I know about your little plan. Taking my alpha powers and transferring them over to this little guy," Tommy said as he hit David making him yelp.

"That's his plan, not mine."

"Well, what is your plan?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dawkins, but that is confidential information," she said with a smile.

"I thought you might say that," Tommy said creeping towards her as she backed into a chalkboard. He threw his fist into the chalkboard next to her. She flinched, turned her head, and saw the giant dent in the board.

"Just calm down, okay?" She said trying to figure out what to do from here. "There's no need to get crazy."

"That's much better. Now, tell me what's going on." Tommy said never taking his eyes off of her. She didn't say anything, she only laughed that same maniacal laugh. He punched the chalkboard again. "If you don't start talking, that dent will be your head."

"They told me you were a gentle creature."

"Who is 'they'?"

"Tommy, are you aware that you are an alpha male werewolf?"

"Yeah and your point?"

"That means that you are one of the most powerful creatures in all of the supernatural world. That strength is a very desirable thing."

"I thought you said this had nothing to do with his plan?" Tommy said, looking over at David, who was still lying on the desk.

"It doesn't. However, many people want the same thing he does."

"If you want my powers for yourself, you can forget about it!"

"That's not what I want either, Tommy. Let's just say that the syndicate is not the only group trying to get you on their side."

Tommy tilted his head as an intrigued expression feel upon his face. "How do you know about the Syndicate?"

"You have a lot to learn about the supernatural world. You think all these monsters that come into town are a coincidence? We're all trying to get the same thing."

"Are you telling me that there is some wanted poster with my face on it floating around?"

"Haven't you ever thought about fighting on the other side? I know what the people around here say about you. They treat you like a dog, Tommy. These people will never appreciate your powers. However, I know many people that would."

"Thanks for the invite but, no thanks," Tommy said with a smile that showed off his fangs.

"You could finally be appreciated for what you are and seek your revenge on those who don't appreciate you," Morgan looked up at Tommy waiting for answer.

"You people just don't get it do you?" Tommy stepped back throwing his hands in the air. "Even though these people want me gone, I don't hate them. They're just scared. People are always scared of something that's different and I understand that. I don't want to get them back for everything they've done to me. I want to protect them."

"Why would you want to protect people who hate you?" Morgan asked, confused.

"Because they're my friends and family and maybe one day they can learn to accept me."

Morgan laughed so loud and obnoxious, it made Tommy jump. "Now I know why all the others get so aggravated with you!" She yelled and levitated in the air and landed on a desk. "You're genuinely good."

"Why does everyone think that's such a bad thing?"

"The world is a cruel place and to act in such a good manner is only a waste of time," Morgan's eyes rolled in the back of her head and she began to mumble Latin under her breath. She levitated into the air and floated across the room to hover above the desks. "All I want is to bring you back with me so I can get what I want."

"Alright so you bring me back to wherever you came from and what do you get? What's so important to come here and ruin my night?" Tommy asked, frustrated.

"I just want a little respect and a little cash."

"Money? That's what you want? I have a five in my pocket if you-"

"I don't want your pocket money, mutt!" She stretched her hand out and a bright blue lightning bolt wrapped around Tommy. He struggled to get loose but, her magic had a tight grip. "I want to be the one who finally stops you. Nobody else could do it but, I will prevail and once I bring you back and lock you away, I can go on a really awesome shopping spree."

"Okay, I'll go with you," Tommy said between deep breaths. She put her hand down and Tommy fell to the floor from the force of the spell.

"Giving up so easy?"

"I'll go back if you do one thing for me first," Tommy said as he stood up. Before Morgan could ask him what he wanted, there was a bang on the door. He turned his head to see an axe coming through the door. One big swing of the axe, and there was a big enough hole for Roxie to get through the door. She stood there, triumphantly holding the axe and staring at Tommy.

"Well I guess this puts our conversation on hold," Morgan said.

"Just turn her back, turn everyone back to normal and I'll go with you." Roxie ran towards him, took a big jump and threw her axe forward. Tommy jumped to the side and ran to the other side of the room.

"Then I won't get to watch you get beaten up by Little Red Riding Hood," Morgan said, pouting with her lips.

"Just change them back!" As Roxie took another swing towards Tommy, he kicked the axe out of her hands. She scrambled to the ground to pick it up but, Tommy kicked it and flew to the other side of the room, in front of the door. Just as Roxie bent down to pick it up, Merton ran in the door and knocked her over. She hit her head on a desk and was knocked out.

"I'm back for more magic tricks only this time, it's my turn!" Merton yelled walking to Tommy.

"Hurry up and change them back!" Tommy yelled as he got ready to fight Merton. Morgan rolled her eyes into the back of her head and mumbled a reversal spell under her breath. A purple light illuminated the room and the entire building and as the light faded, Tommy reached into the pocket on his costume and threw dust at Morgan.

"What was that for, mutt?"

"I changed my mind. I'm not going anywhere with you."

"You have no choice." Morgan lifted her hands and began to mumble a spell. When she finished the spell, she opened her eyes and realized that nothing had happened. Morgan crinkled her forehead and looked at her hands in confusion. She repeated the spell and still nothing happened. "Why are we still here?"

"The mutt outsmarted you. Apparently, witch hazel in powder form can stop a witch from a casting any spells," Tommy said, folding his arms.

Morgan stood in disbelief. "I demand that you come with me!" She yelled as she stood in front of his face.

"I'm afraid that's not going to happen."

Morgan grabbed Tommy by his shirt and tried to pull him towards the door. Tommy didn't budge. "This isn't fair! I've been tricked!"

"Life isn't fair. Get over it." Tommy began to leave the classroom, when David popped up and began to punch him, which was less effective than a mosquito bite. Tommy rolled his eyes, grabbed David by the throat and held him against the wall.

"Both of you need to get out of town by tomorrow morning."

"Or what?" David laughed. Tommy didn't respond only growled and squeezed his throat tighter. "Alright, alright, I get it." Tommy let David go and watched him and Morgan until they were far from the school.

Tommy looked over to Roxie, who was still knocked out. He de-wolfed and ran over to her to make sure she was okay. Her eyes fluttered open and she tried to speak but, she quickly closed her eyes and went to sleep.

Merton stumbled over towards them, rubbing his temples. "What happened tonight?" Tommy picked up Roxie in his arms and explained the whole night to Merton as they walked towards the lounge.


End file.
